News

City Condemns House Appropriations Committee

Post Date:July 13, 2018 4:42 PM

The City of West Hollywood condemns the actions of the House Appropriations Committee, which on Wednesday, July 11, 2018 voted 29-23 to support a discriminatory anti-LGBT amendment to a funding bill for the Department of Labor, Department of Health and Human Services, and Department of Education.

“This House Appropriations vote is unconscionable,” said West Hollywood Mayor John J. Duran. “Discrimination is not a family value and the House Republicans who voted to support this amendment should be ashamed of their actions. This amendment received the support of all but one Republican member of the House Appropriations Committee; all of the Democrats on the Committee voted against it. This amendment, if it stays in the final bill, would effectively allow taxpayer-funded adoption agencies to deny LGBT people the ability to adopt a child based on religious objection. That is discrimination, pure and simple. There should be no discrimination written into the funding priorities of our nation’s most vital federal programs.”

The House Appropriations Committee amendment was introduced by U.S. Representative Robert Aderholt (R-Alabama). If the amendment remains in the final bill, it would:

Allow faith-based adoption agencies to deny services to people based on religious beliefs or moral conviction;

Prevent cities and states from suing faith-based adoption agencies who refuse to service LGBT couples or unmarried individuals seeking to foster or adopt children;

Penalize states by withholding 15 percent of federal funds if a state takes action against faith-based adoption agencies for discriminatory practices.

The City of West Hollywood has continually supported state and federal legislation protecting and advancing the fundamental rights of its community members including LGBT people, people with disabilities, seniors, people of color, immigrants, women, and others. In December 2016, the City Council of the City of West Hollywood reaffirmed its commitment to its core values, which includes Respect and Support for People. West Hollywood is a safe space, regardless of nationality or immigration status, and the City has a commitment to promoting social justice and equal rights.

For more information, please contact Hernan Molina, the City of West Hollywood’s Governmental Affairs Liaison, at (323) 848-6364 or at hmolina@weho.org. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496. For up-to-date news and events, follow the City of West Hollywood on social media @WeHoCity and sign up for news updates at www.weho.org/email.